While upperclassmen were busy taking the PSAT Wednesday morning, Menchville’s class of 2020 gathered in the auditorium for the second Lead2Feed seminar.

This Lead2Feed seminar was once again led by Activities Director Pete Mercier and English Teacher Allison Nuckols, with a guest speaker- Stephanie Cooke, an Emmy-Award winning TV producer with Wavy-TV 10.

Wednesday’s meeting revolved around a theme of perception, and how first impressions may not always be correct.

“Remind yourself that you never know,” Cooke said in regards to other people’s struggles. This message tied in to Cooke’s speech, which relayed her personal experiences with having to turn to a food pantry for meals.  Cooke spoke about how no one might have guessed the issues she was handling based on her image, and how perceptions can mask the troubles people face.

Menchville students attending the seminar were also warned about the dangers of the “Bystander Effect.” Summarized by Nuckols, the Bystander Effect is the thought process that “someone else will help.” Instead of keeping this frame of mind, students were encouraged to contribute to causes in any way they could.

“You may think ‘I can only do this,’ but often times that can be enough,” said  Nuckols. She stressed how every person can help to solve world issues, even if each person can only do a little bit.

And help they will- Menchville students have many opportunities to support the Lead2Feed program in the upcoming months.

Menchville’s annual Thanksgiving canned food drive will start on November 1st. Canned goods will be collected in homerooms, with the top-collecting homeroom winning a prize. Later on November 5th, Menchville will be participating in the CROP Walk at Christopher Newport University to raise money and awareness for hunger relief. Students who are interested can join the MHS team and meet at 2:00 pm on Saturday, November 5th in Trible Plaza.

To stay informed about future Lead2Feed events and keep up with the latest news, students are encouraged to sign up for the Lead2Feed remind chain. To receive text updates and reminders, text “@foodcubs” to 81010.